Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Second Markdowns at Saks, Bergdorf & Barneys

By ManhattanMataHari

New York’s big three department stores– Bergdorfs, Saks, and Barneys – started taking their second markdowns and added sale merchandise from Chanel, Christian Louboutin and Alaia. We scoured the stores and compared prices on our favorite designer items. We found that Barney’s has the best prices on accessories and clothing but the selection is more limited than their competition. Saks generally has the best pricing on shoes but their ready-to-wear discounts are currently tied with Bergdorf Goodman. You can click here to see dozens of pictures from our shopping trip.

Barneys
The first floor of Barneys, which is essentially a handbag gallery, has discounts that range from 30% to 40% off. We found a surprisingly large selection of Proenza Schouler handbags on sale, including a great lime PS1 satchel for $1119 from $1695. Balenciaga has two seasonal non-leather bags on sale, a small olive First for $959 and large cherry red work bag for $999. If you head to the second floor you will find the best selection of Giambattista Valli and Lanvin clothing, which takes the cake at 60% off. On the third floor we were impressed by the selection of Jil Sander and The Row for 60% off. Unfortunatly, the Missoni selection was rather thin. There are loads of Celine ready-to-wear but the discount is just 40% off. On the fourth floor we were sad to not find any discounted Saint Laurent or Proenza Schouler but were buoyed by the huge selection of Balenciaga, Marni and Givenchy at a 60% cut. As for shoes, Chanel will go on sale Friday at 40% discount and Louboutin, Alaia and Celine are all currently 40%. Most other designer shoes are currently 60% off retail. Barneys shoe department is a clear winner for the best selection of Saint Laurent, Lanvin, Miu Miu and Maison Martin Margiela. We spotted some funky Bottega Veneta platform pumps for $349 from $880. We don’t anticipate further discounts on shoes but there will be one more markdown on clothing, which usually goes to 75% off. More pictures are right this way.Jamise (accessories): 833-2031Olga (2nd floor): (212) 833-2522Alicia (3rd floor): (212) 833-2088Kareem (shoes): (212) 833-2141

Bergdorf Goodman
If you’re looking for Tom Ford purses then you should head to Bergdorf Goodman. There are two red Jennifer bags for $1829 from $2750 and a small cross body version in blue suede for $1129. We also found print Proenza Schouler and Givenchy satchels in the sale mix. Our favorite discount bags are the selections of Valentino and Nancy Gonzalez, which are marked down 40%. Heading up to shoes, there are many misleading signs that will tell you the shoes are 40% off, however you will be hard pressed to find any styles discounted more than 30%. The good news is the shoe selection here is definitely the best of all the department stores and includes high end brands like Roger Vivier, Alaia, Lanvin, Tom Ford, Saint Laurent, Charlotte Olympia and Christian Louboutin. In the mix are gold and silver metallic YSL Tribute sandals and a great selection of boots. Heading into the boutiques, Tom Ford and Fendi are nearly full of 40% off ready-to-wear. The Gucci selection is also still very plentiful. The third floor of Bergdorfs has loads of mixed designer sales racks. We were smitten with the great selection of Roland Mouret dresses and discounted Prada and Balenciaga. The fourth floor selection of Akris, Oscar de la Renta, Lanvin and Valentino is far more extensive than Saks. How can you say no to one of those clear rockstud trench coats? Since the selection is so extensive, you may want to hold off until July when shoes typically go to a 50% cut and clothing is discounted up to 75%. Click click for photos.Carlos (Chanel accessories): (212) 872-2858Scott (shoes): (212) 872-8940Trayvion (Chanel clothing): (212) 872-8689Rachel (3rd floor): (347) 986-9629

Saks Fifth Avenue
When you go to Saks Fifth Avenue prepared to take an additional 25% off sales prices (plus an extra 10% with your Saks card), which puts prices in Barney’s markdown territory. We are not usually impressed with the handbag selection at Saks but we did spot some discounted Stella McCartney faux animal fur Falabella totes and Marc Jacobs shoulder bags for 40% off. We also found an orange Chloe Paraty and snakeskin embossed micro Marcies discounted 30%. There are a few Alexander McQueen day bags for 40% off. On the second floor you will find loads of discounted Michael Kors. We saw tons of Piazza Sempione, Escada and Brunello Cucinelli, Yigal Azrouel, MaxMar and Moschino. Checking out the Burberry selection we were please to see several coats and trenches, including a nice basic short black trench for $717 from $1195. There are also great sale options at Etro, Missoni and Ralph Lauren Black Label. Up on the third floor we were disappointed there weren’t many signature Emilio Pucci prints on sale but nearly everything in the extensive Dolce & Gabbana section is 40% off. The Jason Wu, Herve Leger and Proenza Schouler sales racks are becoming sparse but we were thrilled to find lots of awesome Peter Pilotto print dresses. Heading to the shoe salon everything is currently 30% off plus the extra 25%. Chanel, Dior and Louboutin shoes are all segregated on the right side and are elageable for the additional 25%. We found our favorite Chanel velvet smoking slippers for $595 from $850 but were not impressed by the Louboutin selection. Of all the department stores, Saks has the best selection of YSL Tribute and Tribtoo pumps. Same goes for Brian Atwood’s Maniac pumps, Nicholas Kirkwood, Giuseppe Zanotti crystal-embellished everything and Alexander McQueen. Peek at our pictures for more in store details.

Lila! I think I love you lol, thanks for the YSL info! Want a clutch so badly. How early would you suggest going Friday? Also wanted to share that Pam Jenkins in the UK had great deals on CLs (@ 50 percent off), I scored some daffodiles for about $560 US. Also the website footcandy.com still has a few, @30 percent off.

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About Me

I’m a fashion/business journalist turned blogger. New York Magazine, ABC News, Smart Money and The Wall Street Journal are just a few stops that have prepared me for this particular endeavor. I’m writing on my time about what I know best: Shopping. No sale is too private. No brand too aspirational. I’m breaking it down and dishing the best deals—and we’re not talking just sample sales. This is the real deal gurl!